Mystriophis crosnieri Blache, 1971
Accepted species in Catalogue of Life’s 11 September 2026 base release. This preserves the source classification and available supporting data; it is not a completed species monograph.
Open encyclopedia reference
Mystriophis crosnieri, known commonly as the spoon-nose eel in the United Kingdom, is an eel in the family Ophichthidae (worm/snake eels). It was described by Jacques Blache in 1971. It is a marine, tropical eel which is known from the eastern Atlantic Ocean, including Senegal, Angola, and the western Mediterranean. It dwells at a depth range of 75 to 300 metres (246 to 984 ft), and forms burrows in sand and mud sediments on the continental shelf. Males can reach a maximum total length of 96.5 centimetres (38.0 in).
The diet of M. crosnieri consists of benthic crustaceans.
Wikipedia contributors, Mystriophis crosnieri; see linked history · CC BY-SA 4.0 . Plain-text lead excerpt, at most 180 words; no infobox or later sections Retrieved 2026-10-05T23:15:46.237337+00:00. This reference remains separate from the taxonomic record.
Identity & source status
- Scientific name
- Mystriophis crosnieri Blache, 1971
- Name authority
- Blache, 1971
- Rank
- species
- Accepted status
- accepted
- Kingdom
- Animalia
- Phylum
- Chordata
- Class
- Teleostei
- Order
- Anguilliformes
- Family
- Ophichthidae
- Genus
- Mystriophis
- Extinction status
- Not supplied by this source
Source habitat flags: Marine: yes · Freshwater: no · Terrestrial: no. These do not form a complete habitat description.
Classification family tree
Nested taxonomic groups from the source. This is not a direct-ancestor chain, a dated evolutionary tree or a phylogenetic reconstruction.
- domainEukaryota (Chatton, 1925) Whittaker & Margulis, 1978
- kingdomAnimalia
- phylumChordata
- subphylumVertebrata
- infraphylumGnathostomata
- parvphylumOsteichthyes
- gigaclassActinopterygii
- superclassActinopteri
- classTeleostei
- orderAnguilliformes
- familyOphichthidae Günther, 1870
- subfamilyOphichthinae Günther, 1870
- genusMystriophis Kaup, 1856
- speciesMystriophis crosnieri Blache, 1971
Close classified relatives
These entries share the source’s genus, Mystriophis. They are not necessarily the closest relatives established by molecular evidence.
| Species | Classification | Source status |
|---|---|---|
| Mystriophis rostellatus (Richardson, 1848) | OphichthidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Mystriophis caboverdensis Da Luz, Lopes, Jimenez & Psomadakis, 2025 | OphichthidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
Source literature & publication evidence
References attached to this source record, including nomenclatural citations where supplied. This is a selected bibliography; abbreviated citations remain in the source’s form.
- Blache, J. (1971). Contribution à la connaissance des Poissons anguilliformes de la côte occidentale d’Afrique. Onzième note: les genres Mystriophis et Echiopsis (Fam. des Ophichthidae). Bulletin de l’Institut Fondamental d’Afrique Noire (Serie A) Sciences Naturelles, 33 (1): 202–226. Source fields: Taxon.tsv dwc:namePublishedIn, Taxon.tsv dcterms:references
Origins, evidence & remaining research
Name authority and publication references document nomenclature where the source supplies it. They do not establish evolutionary origins or the earliest fossil occurrence.
Specimen-level evidence, morphology, ecological research, phylogenetic studies, a comprehensive bibliography and a located literary passage have not yet been compiled for this record. A suitable sourced image remains to be added.
Dataset citation & attribution
This exact taxon in ChecklistBank · Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11
Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11; dataset 316321; doi:10.48580/dgz5n. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ . Retrieved 5 October 2026.
Stable key: col:45FPK. Classification follows source parent identifiers. English common names may vary by region.